Making the News: Incoming Governors Get Ink for Prioritizing Early Childhood Issues

Governor Newsom has made early childhood development issues front page news.

In the days leading up to swearing-in and his first weeks in office, Governor Gavin Newsom has made good on his campaign commitments by boosting proposed funding for early childhood development and stocking his cabinet and inner circle of advisors with champions for children.

Newsom’s proposed budget includes the highest dollar amount committed to young children of any California governor in history. Elements of his budget include six months of shared paid leave for parents, full-day kindergarten, expanded home visiting and developmental screenings.

By focusing on kids, the governor has made the issues facing young children headline news; he’s elevated awareness to the general public and created the urgency needed to build on the work of the California State Legislature over the past two years.

And this focus on kids is not limited to California.

Several education-focused outlets compiled lists of governors across the nation who have made early childhood explicit parts of their platforms. Even in the very conservative state of Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey has been quoted as saying, “early childhood education is the cornerstone of a child’s healthy development.” And Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp has committed to protect funding for early childhood education.

To help our readers track the recent coverage of state-level support for early childhood development, both in California and throughout the nation, we have curated a comprehensive list of news articles below. The pieces begin on Election Day and are grouped into articles detailing the nationwide phenomena of governors and early childhood; Newsom’s early childhood-focused actions since elected; and opinion pieces about Newsom’s early childhood commitments to date. We hope you find this repository helpful as we collectively live, in real-time, this exciting window of opportunity for kids.

The following resource provides an overview of each governor-elect’s early education support. The profiles include relevant policy initiatives, campaign pledges, and public comments each official has made regarding critical early learning and care issues. (11/6/18)

While the big takeaway of the midterm election is that Democrats seized control of the House of Representatives and Republicans expanded their majority in the Senate, the results of the 36 gubernatorial races will likely have a greater impact in the short-term on early care and education policy. (11/12/18)

Governor-Elect Gavin Newsom is promising universal preschool for the next generation, and with Democrats winning a supermajority in the state Legislature, education in California is likely to see some big changes. (11/29/18)

Democrats return to the California Capitol on Monday with their strongest political advantage in decades poised to fulfill a huge item on their list of pent-up demands: Vastly expanded access to preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds. (12/03/18)

Kim Belshé, executive director of the child-advocacy organization First 5 LA and a former state Health and Human Services secretary, said the Newsom budget proposal suggests the governor-elect will focus on a comprehensive approach to improving the outcomes for children from low-income families. (1/2/19)

"There has not been an investment proposed of this sort by a past governor in California ever," said Kim Pattillo Brownson, vice president of Policy and Strategy for the child advocacy group First 5 LA. (1/2/19)

California’s incoming governor, who must send his first state budget plan to the Legislature this week, has already signaled a significant new focus on programs to help families and children from infancy to college. (1/6/19)

It’s been a while since Californians had a governor who is also a Dad. And as Newsom begins his governorship he’s made clear that his role leading the state will be informed by his role at home. (1/7/19)

According to the Newsom transition team document outlining the plan, the push for universal preschool would be part of “the largest, most comprehensive investment in early learning and child development in California history.” (1/7/19)

The spending plan also includes $500 million in one-time money for “building child care infrastructure, including investing in the education of the child care workforce,” according to a news release from the governor’s office. (Caiola, 1/10/19)

First 5 programs, which use state and county funds to support low-income families with young children, already screen for this type of trauma during home visits. But Erin Gabel, a deputy director of First 5 California, said the governor’s proposal could go a long way toward making this more widespread. (Caiola, 1/14/19)

Efforts to improve the health and education of California’s children would get a giant funding boost under Gov. Gavin Newsom’s budget, a prospect that’s generating a swell of excitement among child advocacy groups. (Boyd-Barrett, 1/15/19)

Dr. Nadine Burke Harris will be California’s first-ever Surgeon General. Kris Perry will be Deputy Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency for Early Childhood Development and Senior Advisor to the Governor on Implementation of Early Childhood Development Initiatives. (1/21/19)

To improve educational outcomes, the former San Francisco mayor argues that the state needs to begin offering services in early childhood with interventions continuing throughout school and college. (11/7/18)

“I encourage California’s Legislature to support this element of the state budget proposal. Every child in California deserves the best chance for a bright future.” — Mark K. Shriver, Bethesda, Md. (1/6/19)

The money would be used to subsidize child care facilities and expand full-day kindergarten, as well as fund in-home postnatal visits for low-income mothers, a program commonly found in European countries. (1/8/19)

Preschool for all, which used to be a rallying cry for the champions of California’s children, gets little airtime these days. Children’s advocates are cheering Gavin Newsom’s just-released budget proposal — but the new governor’s plan skimps on prekindergarten. (Kirp, 1/17/19)